A 25-year-old girl from Florida claims that veganism helped her reverse her vitiligo. Jamila Davis from Florida has skin covered in lighter patches and was diagnosed with vitiligo- a condition caused by low melanin production in the body at the age of 8.
As she grew, the patches grow bigger and spread throughout the whole body. After her father died because of a stroke back in 2017, Davis decided to go vegan because of planning to transition to plant-based diet together with her father.
She never expected her change in diet to help her improve her condition.
Vegan Diet Reduced Her Skin Patches
A year after no meat and meat products, the college student was witnessing her normal skin color returning. She didn’t use any other treatments and hasn’t consulted a dermatologist after her transition to plant-based diet.
According to Davis, growing up with this condition has never bothered her and she actually loves the fact she was different than others. However, there were unpleasant situations when children would stare at her and point fingers and others laughing and saying harmful words to her.
Her family and friends are amazed to see her changing to her normal skin color, but are also praising her for being strong and beautiful because she’s embracing her real self.
How Was Davis Diagnosed?
When she was just a small child in 2001, she noticed small white patches on her eyes, but her parents weren’t worried. But, when they began appearing on other areas, they headed to the doctor’s office.
This condition is not very common- it affects around one percent of the world population and this autoimmune condition happens because the immunity is destroying the melanocyte skin cells.
For vitiligo patents, there are several treatments to cover the patches or to restore some of the colors and prevent further spreading. Some of the most common ones are topical creams, phototherapy, and skin grafts.
Why She Went Vegan?
The primary reason why she decided to follow a vegan diet is that she and her father planned on transitioning together before his death in order to improve their health.
She never thought this would help her restore her normal skin color. She believes her father is proud of her and why she did what she did.
Can Veganism Help Vitiligo Patients?
Until now, there’s no scientific data showing the benefits/disadvantages of following a vegan diet in case you have vitiligo. However, for Davis, a vegan diet helped her a lot. It’s feeding her body with the nutrients she needs and she has never been happier about herself.
Therefore, she decided to share her story with the public and maybe encourage others with this health problem to embrace their true selves, despite of how they look. She wants others to feel nothing less than amazing about themselves, regardless of how they look.
Despite seeing a large part of her skin improving because of her diet changes, she fully embraces her condition and claims she will ‘love it forever’. It’s something that helped her grow and learn to love herself.
Nonetheless, according to doctor Emma Wedgeworth, a dermatologist and spokesperson for British Skin Foundation, though they don’t fully understand why the immunity attacks the pigment cells, there seems to be some genetic reason and some lifestyle factors like stress that can worsen the condition.
She adds that the condition may spontaneously better and creams and light therapy are often helpful. The research on diet and vitiligo link is scarce, but she does support following a healthy diet for a stronger and healthier immunity.
Wedgeworth claims it’s amazing that this girl has seen improvement because of her diet; but, in her experience, in most patients with this condition, a change in diet doesn’t help reverse the condition.
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